The new Chief Constable of Northumbria Police says the force can no longer “do everything” because the next wave of spending cuts will be “totally different” to the others.

In his first full interview as Chief Constable, Steve Ashman said George Osborne’s drive to slash state spending would make life at the force “bloody awful for a while” but that Northumbria Police would adapt and “completely change [its] set-up”.

He told the Police Oracle neighbourhood policing would remain the “foundation” of the force as he underlined that eroding the “connection between the police and the public” would have “dire consequences for future generations”.

“We’ve got through the first phase of cuts because we tightened our belts, modernised, invested in a lot of technology and rationalised the estate because we value people more than buildings,” he said.

“But the next stage is totally different. We have to completely change our set-up, but I cannot see the day when we would lose neighbourhood policing, because if that goes then you lose the connection between the police and the public, and that would have dire consequences for future generations.

“It’s the foundation of Northumbria Police, but we will of course have to look different in terms of what we do.”

His words come after Sara Thornton, head of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, warned last month policing must be “re-imagined” by individual forces as the national loss of 35,000 more police posts by 2020 will be a “game changer”.

Chief Constable Ashman, who stepped up from deputy to take the reigns from Sue Sim earlier this year, said Northumbria officers will continue to protect the most vulnerable in society but other bodies must step up to the plate and not rely on the police for everything.

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“Our default position is never say no, and I am proud of that,” he said. “But I am fed up of other agencies thinking that we will do everything. Sixteen per cent of our work in Northumbria is tackling crime, and the rest is about safety and welfare.

“If your gran falls over and the ambulance doesn’t arrive, it’s the police who will help. We are there for the elderly and the mentally ill, and I wouldn’t want that side of things to go away.

“But I am sick of others thinking ‘Oh, the police will deal with that’. It has always been our default position - everything comes back to the police.

“But that cannot continue. We can no longer provide everything to everyone’s satisfaction. “For example, petrol stations, when they ring us about petrol theft - that wouldn’t happen if it was pay at the pump, so they could be doing more on their own.

“Cyber crime is another example - industries need to play their part in tackling the problems.”

He added that while life would be tougher for officers, they should be proud of the work they do protecting communities.

“Things will be a mess and bloody awful for a while, but we will get through the other side and will still be here, and members of Northumbria Police will be serving with pride,” he said. “Officers are working harder today than they have ever had to, much harder than when I joined, and are under more scrutiny than ever.

“But we have to take it on the chin and remember that there is an awful lot we have to be proud about in this force.

“I want our officers to think this is a fantastic place to work. I was very proud to start my career at the Met, and very proud to work in Cleveland.

“But nothing can ever top coming back to the force where I’m from and where my father and father-in-law both worked, and I want my officers to feel the same way about their job.”